VW: Interview with VW of America’s new boss Jonathan Browning

VW’s just-released sketches of the car reveal a crisply chiseled sedan of conventional proportions. It will debut “in close to finished form” at this January’s Detroit auto show, says Browning. The key to the NMS is a car designed to meet American tastes — and competitive pricing.

“Volkswagen has high awareness and acceptance in the U.S.,” says Browning. “But our products lead us into a narrow piece of market. Our cars are too expensive. We’re limited by our transaction prices.” With this factory, which has the initial capacity to build 150,000 vehicles, Browning believes that “we’ll have our cost-base in place.”

He stresses that “the brand positioning remains the same for the NMS,” including its engineering standards, level of innovation and dynamic qualities.